Healthy Moms- Parenting, Pregnancy, Health and Women's Issues

Seven Tips for Easy, Healthy Menu Planning

noreply@blogger.com (Debi Silber, "The Mojo Coach") — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 14:44:13 PDT

Think healthy meal planning needs to be difficult and time consuming? Use even a few of these tips and enjoy the extra time you’ll discover as a result.

1) Use a slow cooker - These are a busy person’s dream. Simply set everything up in the morning and enjoy a warm, home cooked meal when you’re through with your busy day.

2) Overcook - I don’t mean keeping something in the oven for too long but make different versions using the same main ingredient. For example, let’s say you’re cooking chicken cutlets. How about buying a family sized package then getting the cutlets ready in a variety of ways. You can prepare some with BBQ sauce, season some for baking, use some for stir fry and grill some to use in sandwiches and salads. They’ll all be cooked and ready to use as you need them throughout the week.

3) Double a recipe - As long as you’ll be cleaning those pots and pans anyway, may as well make more than for just one meal. Simply double or triple the recipe, label and freeze for later use.

4) Have breakfast for dinner - Since breakfast is the most important meal of the day why not enjoy it more than once from time to time? Breakfast can be a goldmine of healthy foods with careful planning choosing foods such as nutrient rich, high fiber cereals, whole grain pancake or waffle mix, fresh fruit smoothies, low fat milk, yogurt, cheese, eggs and much more.

5) Keep a running food shopping list - By keeping a running list in your kitchen, you’ll find it easy to keep healthy foods on hand. As you’re running low, simply jot them down to be replaced during your next trip to the supermarket. Keeping a running list is also a handy way of writing down healthy, delicious ingredients you’ll discover when reading magazines, watching TV or when a healthy meal idea comes to mind. By sticking to your list you’ll also avoid many of the high sugar, high fat, highly processed “impulse buys” you may normally purchase if you didn’t bring a list along.

6) Use some “supermarket savvy” - When food shopping, keep things quick, easy and healthy with precut, prewashed vegetables, fresh fruit, whole grain breads, nuts, beans and quick cooking lean protein. Frozen vegetables are also great to keep on hand as well as frozen entrees such as Healthy Choice, Weight Watchers or Lean Cuisine. Feel free to add a salad or cooked vegetable to round out the meal, make it more filling and satisfying.

7) Menu planning, food delivery and food preparation services - There are so many great options available to made meal planning quick and easy.

* Online menu planning services offer easy weekly or monthly menu ideas based on your tastes, preferences, restrictions and budget. They also provide printable shopping lists to easily get what you need to prepare each delicious meal.

* Depending upon where you live, grocery delivery services may be available. Ordering your groceries and scheduling delivery times are only a click away. Not only is this option a huge time saver but for those with busy lifestyles, this service can be priceless!

* Another service designed to save time while still promoting the idea of a home cooked meal has been becoming increasingly popular. Some look like comfortable, yet professional kitchens where the customer is able to simply walk in and “assemble” the meal using fresh, premeasured ingredients and all that’s left to do is go home and pop it in the oven for the recommended amount of time. If this option takes too long, entrees can even be “preassembled” and picked up leaving you to do nothing more than put it in your oven.

* Meal delivery services (and no, I don't mean pizza!) are another option where according to your tastes, restrictions and preferences meals and snacks can be packaged and delivered right to your door. Nothing is quicker and easier than a meal that's already prepared, portioned and ready to eat!

Healthy meal planning doesn’t have to be difficult or time consuming at all. It can be quick, easy and delicious with just a little bit of creativity and the willingness to do things just a little differently.

Debi "The Mojo Coach"
www.TheMojoCoach.com
www.AskTheMojoCoach.com

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Wordless Wednesday | My Pregnancy Photos

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 06:38:09 PDT

Yes finally I am going to show you how I look right now. In fact I am wearing the same clothes that I have on in these photos. I am huge and ready for this baby to be born any day now! My oldest took the photos and I edited them over at photobucket. Enjoy!

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Why Sticker Charts for Kids Don't Work

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 21:42:00 PDT

Have you tried every form of discipline and nothing has worked? I bet it has left you tired, frustrated and without hope.

Some children just do not respond to basic forms of discipline. Bribery with sticker charts, timeouts and screaming and yelling may not change your child's behavior. If that is the case for you take a look at this great book by Alyson Schafer, best selling author of "Breaking the Good Mom Myth".

Honey, I Wrecked the Kids: When Yelling, Screaming, Threats, Bribes, Timeouts, Sticker Charts and Removing Privileges All Don't Work

She brings the same advice and perspective that made "Breaking the Good Mom Myth" an international bestseller, TV host and psychotherapist Alyson Schafer again comes to the rescue of desperate parents everywhere. For those who've tried just about every parenting method out there.

There is hope for you and your child. If you are losing control of your child's behavior Healthy Moms recommends you read Honey, I Wrecked the Kids by Alyson Schafer.

You might also like this title by Alyson Schafer:

Breaking the Good Mom Myth: Every Mom's Modern Guide to Getting Past Perfection, Regaining Sanity, and Raising Great Kids

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My daughter, the Poet

michellepugh1@yahoo.com (Michelle) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 19:29:00 PDT

My middle daughter, Madison, came downstairs with this in hand...

Mom

Her eyes are like the ocean,
endless and deep blue.
Her smile is like the sun,
it shines down on you.
Her red hair reflects the light
that shines from her fair skin.
When she laughs and talks,
her beauty shows within.

Her beauty blinds the people
that dare cross her way.
One look from her could kill
a mockingbird,
but she doesn't believe the
words I say.
She is unique and one of a kind.
Someone as loving and caring
as her is hard to find.

She always puts others first,
and ignores how she feels.
Her work will soon be rewarded-
all of her cleaning and prepared meals.
Her life are her loves,
the ones for whom she cares.

Waves will crash around her
but her will is strong and will not tear.
She deserves more than
people can give.
But luckily she will not die,
through her legacies she will live.

How sweet is that?! I guess I'm doing something right at this job I call Mom :)

Visit my blog Simply Blessed for more stories about the trials, tribulations and joys of raising five children!

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You Want Me to Wear What for 9 Months?

noreply@blogger.com (GranolaMom4God) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 19:28:02 PDT

Before I became a mom, I frowned upon the women who walked around with their babies. They NEVER seemed to put their child down. There was no space. No life. The women who used those baby cloth harnesses, and I'm not referring to a Baby Bjorn, but a sling or a Cocoon Wrap, those women had no boundaries. They were different. Weird. Granola. I thought they probably disdained using deodorant, burned incense, and camped a lot.

Then I realized that they were moms.

Umm . . . I became one of those women.

I never ever expected that I would become a baby wearer.

But I did.

Motherhood began pretty normal for me. I delivered naturally at the hospital. I decided to give cloth diapering a whirl, only because it was different and cheaper. I decided to experience life as a cow (just kidding . . . kind of).

I liked this natural life. But I didn't want it to go any farther into the rabbit hole. My firstborn was a very unhappy child and I became an unhappy mom. I was frustrated at not getting anything done and Mr. Smackdown was frustrated that I was clueless.

Every week I traipsed to a local breastfeeding support group. Issue after issue, the lactation consultants kept encouraging me to give my milking career just two more weeks. I gave it two weeks, for three months. Two bouts of thrush and four mastitis infections later, I finally found contentment, rest, and happiness.

I gave in to this sweet lady that came to our group every week selling baby slings. Something had to change. I had tried everything else unnatural. Slings looked like a natural solution. Both my baby and I had to become happy again. It was was still in absolute shock that I wasn't overjoyed with my new bundle of joy. I had prayed for and waited to meet God's creation, my son. Mr. Smackdown was a true miracle. I wasn't supposed to have children. But I did, and I was a sad postpartum mom.

Until I bought The Sling.

I became a baby wearer and there has been no turning back.

Why wear your baby?

A baby that is held a lot is happier and more secure.
Mom is happy because she can get things done and show love to her bambino.
A mom is better able to understand her baby's body cues and cries because she is near her munchkin and can better decipher wants and desires.
The sling can be used to nurse discretely. If you are new to nursing, you are more likely to nurse in public, knowing that you are covered. Thus, a happy and well fed baby.
Slings can be used as a changing pad in the event of an emergency diaper change.
Use the tail of the sling as a tummy time blanket, or as a blanket for nap times.
Newborns fall asleep quicker in a sling. To them, it feels like they are back in Mommy's womb.
Slings help babies relieve gas pressure.
Fussy infants calm down when they are close enough to mom to feel and hear her heartbeat and smell her aroma.

If you decide to become a sling mama--don't worry, you can wear deodorant! Wearing your baby isn't weird, it's natural. If your child was in your belly 9 months, why not wear your baby on the outside at least 9 months? Hey, my almost 5 year old still goes for rides! In fact, my two older children now how nurturing and soothing the sling is to a baby. They will inform me, "Mr. Smiley is crying. You need your sling!"

Come and visit me at Granola Mom 4 God!

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breastfeeding wearing+your+baby baby+wearing ring+sling

Nutrition 101 Part 2 - Carbs and Fiber

getfitjenn@comcast.net (Coach Jenn) — Tue, 14 Jul 2009 08:55:03 PDT

Last week, we began a Nutrition Basics lesson. We covered the importance of Protein. This week, we'll focus on carbs and fiber.

CARBOHYDRATES & FIBER

Carbohydrates provide energy to the body. They also help protect muscle, fuel the brain, and assist in digestion. Carbohydrates are critical in the utilization of fat as an energy source. Most of your carbohydrates should come from complex carbohydrates such as fruits, vegetables, and whole grains.

Adding fiber into your meal is crucial for overall heath. Fiber (soluble) absorbs water making your feel fuller and for a much longer time. Insoluble fiber helps move the food faster through the stomach and intestines to prevent constipation and other disease. It is recommended to consume about 25-35 grams of fiber per day.

You may be familiar with the more recent classification of carbohydrates by their (GLYCEMIC INDEX) rating. This basically refers to how fast or slow a carbohydrate is processed in your body.

The faster a carbohydrate is processed into sugar, the higher its glycemic index rating and the more your body has to pump out insulin in order to quickly balance out your blood sugar levels. Since insulin triggers your body to store body fat, the more high-glycemic carbohydrates you consume, the more likely you are to gain fat.

Low Glycemic carbohydrates are broken down slowly by the body and don’t spike your insulin levels so you’re less likely to convert them into body fat.

I have a simple system of breaking down the low glycemic carbs into what I call Starchy carbohydrates and Fibrous carbohydrates

My favorite sources of Carbohydrates:

Starchy
Plain Oatmeal (not instant)
Brown Rice
Whole Wheat Pasta
Sweet Potatoes/Yams
Whole Grain Breads
Beans
Nuts
Legumes

Fibrous
Fresh Vegetables
Fresh Fruits

Carbohydrate Rule #1:
Consume one serving of starchy carbohydrate immediately after your workouts.
Immediately after an intense workout, you have what is called a, “Metabolic window of opportunity” when your body has used up blood sugar and muscle glycogen to fuel you’re training.

In this depleted state, your muscles are actually looking for a sugar re-supply and by immediately consuming a higher glycemic (starchy carbohydrate) post-workout meal, the resulting insulin spike will quickly feed your muscles the nutrients they need to begin the repair cycle instead of triggering fat storage.

Carbohydrate Rule #2:
Avoid consuming ANY starchy carbohydrate within about 3-hours before going to bed.
Simply skip the starchy carbohydrates in the evenings.

Carbohydrate Rule #3:
Fibrous carbohydrates are your free-for-all food choices.
It’s virtually impossible to eat to many fibrous carbohydrates like fresh fruits and vegetables to make a serious dent in your calorie intake.

Until next time, have a safe, happy and healthy week ahead.

Coach Jenn of PersonalFitCoach.com

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Soothing Colicky Babies With Aromatherapy

wisdom4wellness@aol.com (OilGirl) — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 06:19:17 PDT

Colic is quite common in babies and in some cases can go on for many months. It is very painful for the baby and distressing for the parents. Babies can be affected whether they're fed from the breast or bottle. Colic is usually ceased when the trapped gas is eventually passed or a bowel movement is made. Essential oils can be useful for encouraging this process and soothing little tummies.
Signs and symptoms of colic:

intense crying, that can go on for hours, usually in the late afternoon and evening
the abdomen feels hard to the touch
the face is flushed; the lips might become pale
baby may draw legs up to stomach; may clench fists.

Abdominal massage can bring great relief and help release trapped gas. Infant massage is best done gently, in small circular clockwise movements, 5-10 minutes after feeding. It can be done while the baby is clothed. To use essential oils mixed in a massage oil, clothing should be removed.

First mix the essential oils in a small dark blue or amber glass bottle using these proportions:

5 drops Coriander

3 drops Peppermint

2 drops Dill

For application use one drop of above mixture in a 1/2 teaspoon almond, grapeseed or jojoba oil and use half of this amount per application for an abdominal massage.

Put the oil mixture in the palm of your non dominant hand and using the fingertips of your other hand, rub over the palm to coat fingertips.
Proceed with abdominal massage starting slightly above the navel and slowly working around the navel as if it were the center of a clock.
Leave the remaining amount of oil mixture in the spoon to use later and set it in a bowl, then cover bowl tightly with plastic wrap to prevent evaporation and contamination.

Warm baths can help relax a spasm as well. Mix 1 teaspoon almond or grapeseed oil with one drop of Lavender and one drop Roman Chamomile. Put a 1/4 teaspoon of this mixture in the bath water. It will float on the surface. Scoop it into your hand and rub over the baby's tummy while in the bath. Make sure none of it splashes in the baby's eyes or on their face.

These tips are for educational purposes only and are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease. Always consult your health care provider in the case of severe discomfort .

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Entrecard Link Love

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 17:19:53 PDT

Have any of you seen this before? If you are an entrecard user it doesn't hurt to try this.

My Entrecard Drop List
(If you are in this list, copy the code at Traders Hub and embed this droplist in your blog! It will build up your links, improve your page rank and bounce rate, and increase your blog authority!)

1. Traders' Hub

2. CoolAdzine for Marketeers

3. AsTheCrackerHeadCrumbles

4. Confessions Of A Fitness Diva

5. Beyond Feron

6. Reality TV Soup

7. Conversations With Moms

8. Things About Computers

9. Wine At Five

10. Leomar's Den

11. Poetic Expression

12. Gems By Jerri

13. Gas Saver

14. WAHM Resource Site

15. Travel On The Tide

16. Femme Power

17.Adamok.net

18. Zorlone

19. Because Someone Cares

20. Adventures Of A Fitness Diva

21. Sexy Old Broad

22. Red Sox Mommy

23. Kapamilya Corner

24. The Erickson Looney Bin

25. Healthy Moms

26. JavaSwim

27. TV News And Reviews

28. Chapters Of My Life

29. A Mom's Note

30. Technochest

31. The Superficial Gallery

32. Random Ramblings

33. The Daily Planet

34. The Work From Home Mother

35. Work At Home Wealth

36. Limitless Adventures

37.Mature Not Senile

38. Juliana's Lair

39. My second Trial

40. Shiny Adornments

41. Sonnie Side Up

42. Renaes Crafty Corner

43. Seek No More

44. Traveling Suitcase

45. All To Read

46. Glitchline

47. Martial Arts Junkie

48. Denford Magora's Zimbabwe Blog

49. Easy Racing

50. Diet Secrets Online

51. Network Of Combined Ideas

52. My Ark

53. Lil Insights

54. The Frugal Housewife

55. The Path To Pegasus Letter

56. Laptops, Mobiles And Forex Trading

57.Where The Road Takes Us

58. Buy Tees

59. Woodworker Blog

60. Our World

61. Paperkraft.Net

62. Stock Market Bliss

63. All About Stock Markets

64. Blogger Templates Blog

65. Fresh Gadget

66. Born To Succeed

67. Fit, Fabulous and Forty

68. Lunatic Banknotes & Coins

69. Atniz Work From Home

70. One

71. Kaya Mo, Pinoy

72.Hello Kitty Gifts

73. Everyday Living

74. Digital Artisan

75. Slightly Sarcastic

76. Theme Today

77. TechieCardia

78. Personal Fit Coach

79. Exposed SEO And Internet Marketing

80. Screaming Me Me

81. Akila's Blog

82. Tracey's Blog

83. Sand And Sea Designs

84. Mama Flo's Place

85. I Love Hate America

86. Photo Journalist

87. 60 Were Enough

88. Jigsaw's Lair

89. Pregnant With Cancer

90. GewGaw Writings

91. Busy Little Elf

92. Swirling Thoughts

93. Nesting Buddy

94. JunkFoodAholic

95. Jill's Creative Cafe

96. Teacher Techie Says

97. Blazing Minds

98. Vanilla Seven

99. DB Comics

100. Search Engine Panel

101. Mom's Lifestyle'

102. Margie and Edna

103. Right Wing Nut Job

104. Show Me The Money

105. Mix It Up With Marc

106. Philippines and Beyond

107. Eddie's Blog

108. A Grateful Heart

109. Dedeandro

110. Is A Man's World

111. Caledonian Comment

112. Juliana's World

113. Kutenk Business & Life Success Center

114. Lucent Dusk

115. Ask Ms Recipe

116. BlogTactic

117. Slightly Drunk

118. Stalking Minds

119. Politekon

120. Anything Goes With Pahn

121. My Tangible Wealth

122. Mobile eBooks, etc.

123. Traditional Jewelry

124. The Certified Fashionable Chic

125. The Bad Blogger

126. Personal Budgeting And Finances

127. East Coast Life

128. Glamorous Sylph

129. Loving You

130. Turn U Off

131. TopClanz

132. The Virtual Dime Museum

133. Designer's Depot'

134. Muyin Jewelry

135. IWalkU2

136. LoL Factory

137. Small Town Mommy

138. Melissa's Humor

139. Melissa's Jewelry

140. First Door On The Left

141. Grampy And You

142. Indian Economy

143. Rosilie: My Blog

144. Lovely Purses

145.Chicago History Journal

146. Life's Journey

147. Rambling Thoughts In SM SERIAN

148. About My Pregnancy

149. Mommy's Little Corner

150. Airfare Now

151. Photo Dito

152. Mom's Check Nyo

153. Just Throw The Money

154. EZGreatLife

155. Serian Man

156. Thoughts Poetry Anything

157. Dogmaw Blog

158. Gadget Freaks

159. Biasasaja Dot Com

160.Free Stuff In Las Vegas

161. Wiggy's World

162. Barackoli Dot Com

163. Sacred Beginnings

164. Super Jenn Super Mom

165. Shalampax Speaks

166. Womens Self Esteem Blog

167. Nuke It Dot Org

168. Fashion Is Chic

169. The Dwacon Blog

170. Cornyman's Money Page

171. Laine's Abode

172. All Blog Contest

173. Window In The Web

174. Newsvids

175. Bloggerhitz The Power of Blogging

176. Fusion Investing

177. Corfu Chronicles

178. Barako Brew

179. A WOMAN REMEMBERS

180. Widgets For Bloggers

181. EMILIA'S ILLUSTRATED BLOG

182. Ultimate Blogging Kit

183. Mom From Manila

184. Quantum Indonesia

185. Journeys Of Cactus Jack

186. David's Musing

187. ALL THINGS VINTAGE

188. Modern Mom

189. Bulgarian Scrapbook

190. Spectrum

191. Melissa's Homeschool

192. Belleverlasting

193. Mathias Chronicles

194. LIFE'S SWEET SPICES

195. Living Life To The Fullest

196. Mutual Love

197. Computer Aid

198. Whatever Ebay

199. Mama's Sanity

200. Singapore Playground

201. My Meme Mania

202. Healthy Life Guide

203. Intelligience Is A Curse

204. Tips And News On Healthy Lifestyle

205. Living Well Naturally

206. My Library

207. The Cooling Stream

208. The Zoo Crew

209. Maria Mitchell's Fur Kids & Animal Rescue

210. My Reflections And Impressions

211. Whatever Comes To My Mind

212. A Fil-Am's Journey

213. Picture To People

214. Stock Recommendations

215. Blog Go Down

216. Chaos Tech

217. Sound Sans Sense

218. THE FLEDGELING BLOGGER

219. Dosh For You

220. Film On Air

221. Lifesign

222. Money Inspired

223. Weight Loss Surgery

224. Tech Blog

225. LOL Cats

226. Tips For Everyday Life

227. Thinks Free

228. Free Stuff In Las Vegas

229. Family Hotels For World Travel

230. Lalaine's World

231. Live Life 365

232. Wife of A Warrior

233. Add Yours

234. Montana Moods

235. Time Recursion

236. Nature Blessing

237. A Maiden's Testimony

238. Chismis Today

239. Family Health Avenue

240.Dream Of Jade

241. Remixmax

242. Are You Hungry?

243. Karen's Opinion

244. Karen's Road

245. Vegan Lifestyle

246. Life Marriage And Kids

247. Chizmosa Lounge

248. Coming Back To Life

249. Stuff And Nonsense

250. The Admaster

251. Stock Tips NSE BSE

252. The Journey

253. Not Your Typical Weight Loss Blog

254. Outlandish Obsevations

255. Finance For The Non Finance Pro

256. Free World Funny Pics

257. Baby And Kids' World

258. Nizhama2

259. Black Is Beautiful

260. Proud Mommy

261. Interblagmoney

262. CLEAR DAY

263. Mommy's Paradise

264. Republic Of A

265. Patsy's Word Of Wisdom

266. Go Take It To The Limit

267. A Rose By Name

268. Film Review

269. Blogger Rap

270. Atenean 101

271. More Fun Than Allowed

272. Bobski 101

273. Cornyman's Blog Review

274. Body And Skin Health

275. Dhark Anjhel

276. Movie News At Glance

277. Savage Nomad

278. A Second Cup

279. Life's Perfect Pictures

280. Young Urban Professionals Nook

281. Fort Thompson

282. Goo From Another Dimension

283. Beyond Left Field

284. Stunned By Stone

285. Here And Now 4 Angel

286. Singapore Draws

287. Legal Cat-astrophe

288. My Caddy

289. Gadget Spots

290. Sjeltur

291. Blackholes And Astrostuff

292. Prove Me Wrong

293. Blog De Manila

294. Forex Trading And More Online Opp

295. Amazingly Me

296. Autumnal Confessions & Sexy Advice

297. Intelligience Is A Curse

298.Make Money Online Wtih EJ Cooksey

299.Bisnis Humor Bendol

300.That Guy Over There Dot Com

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Prayer Chain Across the Blogosphere Week 26

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 09:54:59 PDT

I again would like to thank everyone for participating in the prayer chain. If you are new to this below you shall find what you can do to help spread the prayer chain and how you can add your prayers. I update the list every Sunday. Please help spread the prayer chain because I should be getting hundreds of new prayers every week. If you know anyone who is in need of prayers pleas add them to the list. If you have any updates on the prayers that are listed let me know by leaving a comment.

If you want to pass this prayer chain along on your blog all you need to do is add the prayer chain button and blog about this once a week. Ask your readers to post their prayer intentions as comments. Then you can either contact us with your prayer request, or post them as a comment on the prayer chain. You can also direct your readers here so they can post their prayer intentions directly to our site. If you intend to list prayers on your site please add your link so we can find those prayers.

I should have hundreds of comments from people that need prayers. I know they are out there. When you say your prayers at night, in the morning, or whenever you pray visit our chain and read the intentions. God is listening.

Here's the latest list.

The mother with the child with Asperger's and Asthma and her son.
_____________________________________________________________________________

For my health, the health of my unborn baby and all pregnant women and their unborn babies throughout the world.
______________________________________________________________________________

Please pray for Baby Stellan. You can visit the link for current updates on how he and his mom are doing.

Update
Baby Stellan was released from Boston's Children's Hospital after undergoing successful surgery on his tiny heart. He and his mother are back home in the mid west. God answers our prayers!

Update 6/18/2009

UPDATE:

Hey, it's MckMama here. Thank you all so very much for your love and concern. We are doing as well as could be hoped, with the exception that sweet Stellan is suffering much from being in so much SVT over the past few days. Thankfully, after I fed him just now, he has finally fallen asleep for literally the first time today.

I will update here when I can, and am sending out a few Tweets here and there so you know specifically how to pray.

ORIGINAL POST:

Hi all, this is MckMama's sister, Hilary.

My sister ended up taking Stellan to the ER this afternoon. As I'm sure you know, Stellan has been having many break-throughs of SVT and performing vagel maneuvers just isn't going to suffice anymore for Stellan's long-term plan.

After a bit of trying, they were able to get an IV into Stellan's foot and successfully converted him by using adenosine. As per Dr. B's orders, they are admitting Stellan into the PICU and will further decide what to do from here. It seems as though some new combination of medicines will need to be tried to keep Stellan's SVT under control.

UPDATE: I just spoke with my sister on the phone (6:30pm central time) and Stellan has flipped back into SVT.

So please join me in praying for healing of Stellan's heart and for peace in the hearts of my sister and her family as they deal with this stressful situation.

Lord, wrap your arms around my sister and her family. Fill them with peace and trust as they travel through this "storm." You are our Comfort, our Shelter and our Healer. We beseech you, Lord, to interevene right now and cause Stellan's heart to beat in the rhythm it was meant to! Help us to keep our eyes focused on You. Amen.

Thank you all!
Blessings,
Hilary

_____________________________________________________________

Comments from readers

"My grandson is on his way back from Iraq and I'm praying for him to return safely. He is due back in the states on January 6th and I'll breathe relief when he's back.

This was his second seven month tour in Iraq as a marine.."

Dorothy from grammology

1>Gracie Martin-age 95,still at home with her family but she has gotten very ill and alzheimers is bad.pray for her family as well.

2.>Pray for my friend linda s.,she is 45 and has lung cancer.She is still trying to work and spend as much time with her 3 grandkids as she can...

3.>Dorothy carter-hurt her back at work and they found what they thought may be tumors on her back during xrays-she is 43 and just had her first grandbaby

4.>Rita b.-strength to be a single mom of 3 and a way to come so that they can get a vehicle for the family.

5.>johnny n.-health problems

6.betty r~simply southern-to get rid of this awful congestion in my chest.been fighting it 2 weeks..little summer also has this,it is rough on her at times.she is only 6 mos old.thank you"

Betty from Simply Southern

"I have one to list..

The family of Barbara C. She just lost her battle with cancer."

Felicia from Go Graham Go!

"i'd also like to add my prayer...

please pray for the soul of Al my neighbor (15 yrs old) who passed away last saturday. (January 10) he had bone marrow cancer."

Liza from hMoms... Check Nyo

"What a great thing you are doing here.

My aunt has a best friend who just got a bad cancer report."

Thanks,
Toni
It Is Nap Time

Update from Toni
Just wanted to say that my aunts friend has found a study that will take her so that is some good news.

I would like to add my moms cousin who has cancer and is not doing well at all. Her name is Mandy. She has a 2 year old and I am sure she would appreciate all prayers for her and her family.

"You are a person with a warm heart!

I want pray for all people who still live in the disaster area of China WenChuan earthquake, Hope they all have warm place to live and warm food to eat!

It's the first Chinese new spring festival after earthquake, I hope they have a happy new year!"

IWalk

"Hi Cascia. I'm the one who won the labor looks gown from your contest. Our baby was born on January 7th, and he is doing really well. But my labor and delivery did not go as planned or as we'd hoped, and I ended up with a partial 4th degree tear from an emergency forceps delivery, other wounds from 4 hours of intense pushing more than 36 hours after my water broke, and an infected abcess/hematoma in the same spot along the tear site. More than 3 weeks after my son's birth, several heavy-duty medications and 3 surgical procedures later, I am just now "out of the woods". But recovery is going to be very slow, and the emotional struggle is starting to get intense now that the physical struggles have lessened. In a week, my mom will be heading home, and I'll be on my own while my husband works. Normally, that would be okay, but with the unique issues from my complications, it is going to be hard. (I can't even sit or walk properly. And certain muscles in that area will need physiotherapy to get back to normal functioning.) Basically, I need healing of body and mind, as well as the ability to fully care for my son and somehow do household things that my husband cannot do with his schedule. (He does a ton and is the best, but his energy and time don't allow for taking care of my entire load.)

My other struggle right now is being able to see and feel all the zillions of positive and good things happening around me right now, and I seem stuck on the negative. I do see God's hand prints all over this situation, especially in the way my maternity doctor has cared for me both physically and spiritually, going above and beyond the normal role of medical physician. So there are many "Ebenezers" I see and cherish. But this journey is still hard, and sometimes finding Jesus beside me in all of this is not easy.

Thank you for praying."

Inkling's Public Blog

Hi, I was wondering if you could add my brother-in-law in your prayers. He found out a couple of weeks ago that he has prostate cancer.

Thanks.

Sue from Stay At Home Mom

Comments from message box

"Hi Cascia, my 60-year-old 2nd-brother has been in ICU since 30Dec08. Chances are 50/50. Let's pray that he will make it thru. Jus me, Wenny of Inside My Bubble Today."
Please pray for Wenny's family. Her brother passed away on January 7.

Hi,I am a mother of 2 boys, Sometimes I'm just overwhelmed with motherhood and most of the time I'd be stressed. Please pray for me.Thank you.

Anonymous (guest): I feel selfish asking for prayers for myself! I am a single Mom with 2 young children with disabilities. I lost my job last year and now my home is going into foreclosure. I am overwhelmed and could use your support and prayers to get me through this! Thank you!

APrayingWifey (guest): Hello..I would like prayer please for a miracle for my husband..as well as for my children,my family and myself.Also would like prayer to find more like minded,God filled friends who love God and their family like I do.I am overwhelmed..new to the blogging thing and nervous..as well as needing prayer for the rest of the attorney fees asap..

If you have prayers you want to add to the prayer chain please leave a comment or message me in the prayer chain box.If you want to promote the prayer chain on your blog all you need to do is blog about it along with our list of prayers and a link back here. You can use the button code to link back to the prayer chain. I made a new button so if you have the old one on your site you might want to grab the new code. When you are saying your prayers at night or whenever you pray don't forget to add the intentions on the Healthy Moms prayer chain.

Visit these blogs to read more prayers across the blogosphere.

Of Course I Could Be Wrong Prayer List
Palm Sunday Catholics and Anglicans Share Prayer
Catholic Fire Prayer Needed for Esther
Sunday Prayer
A Prayer for Palm Sunday
Pray for Christian Jason M.
Pray for Haiti
Pray for Charity

Pray for Summa Mamas
Pray for Farmers
Pray for Ryan
Pray for Becca's Husband
Pray for this girl suffering from depression
Please pray for 7-year old Yair Tuvia ben Michal
Please pray for Jack Cooper's Mother, Mrs. Heinz
Pray for Jerry Kelso's Family
Please Pray for Carter

Please Pray for Emily and Baby Abigail!
Pray for Erin
Pray for KAMERYN HEMBREE You can also visit her Facebook page for more information. http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=70157358667&ref=ts
Please pray for a mother and her unborn child. She is struggling with preterm labor. You can also visit her Blog for more information.
Pray for this young man who was injured in a motorcycle accident.
Pray for JoAnna and Ron You can also visit JoAnna's blog for more information.
Please pray for a woman's grandchildren. Their family is really suffering during these tough economic times.
Please pray for Aiden. Aiden is a little boy who almost drowned in February, 2008. His recovery has been long and hard on his family.
Pray for Baby Ethan.

Please pray for Jesse. Visit her blog for more information.

Pray for Kayleigh and her family.
*Update Kayleigh went home to Jesus on May 10, 2009. Please keep her family in your prayers during this difficult time.

Belief Net's Prayer Circle of the Day

Please Pray for the McCabe Family
This morning I received a text message from a nursery worker saying one of the families from our church lost there house do to a fire. The family happened to be one I have babysat for a couple of years. (Actually posted a picture of the kids a while back on here). I rode by the house minutes ago and the house is gone. Every room was destroyed, so I can image they lost everything. I feel so helpless and so heartbroken that they have to go through this. Please say a pray for them tonight and for the days ahead.

Pray for my husband, Lensey
Today, I ask all the readers for their prayers and positive thoughts. We are believing God to give him favor with men today. I expect a miraculous move of God. Will you guys pray for and expect it with me?

PRAY FOR THE FREEMAN FAMILY!

Pray for the Rine and Pate families

Pray for baby Noah

Have you heard this story?...This is tragic and has stayed with me, please pray for this precious little boy, his family and team of Doctors...pass on the blog address to and help rally prayer warriors everywhere!

www.noahsroad.com
(not sure why the link is not working but please visit anyway and learn his story!)

Pray for Tiffany&Babies 28wks
I asked my new friend, Tiffany, if I could ask you all to pray for her and the 3 miracles she's carrying! She is my neighbors' sister, lives in NC, and is expecting 2girls and 1boy! I'm pretty sure she is at 29 wks tomorrow! The last 2 wks she has been having a lot of contractions and is desperately trying to keep those babies in the oven longer! She has no cervix left so every day is a huge blessing! Please pray for her sanity, thru the ups and downs of this stage of the journey! Peace for her and her hubby. That those babies can stay in for a few more weeks! For a "non-emergency" delivery and the safe deliveries of 3 healthy babies! Thanks so much for praying! We know first hand that God hears these prayers and can and will work miracles!

Pray For Nate Click on his button to learn about Nate's battle with childhood cancer.

Please pray for poor Faith. She spent probably 3/4 of her day crying or whining. I am not sure what is going on with her. If she keeps it up, I will take her to the doctor tomorrow to make sure she is ok. Also pray for patience for me. I spent my morning in tears with her crying in my lap. Her voice is sctatchy from all of the screaming today. I'm off to comfort her again. She is crying in her bed. Ivy League Baby

Please pray for...
On Sunday evening, I learned that my Dad's brother-in-law, my Uncle Joe, had died. It was two months after he had a stroke (my cousin found her Dad on the floor when she came to pick him up for Sunday Mass). I put a prayer request for Uncle Joe and my cousins on the many social networks I participate in: Twitter, Plurk, Facebook, Plaxo and Hi5. And ever since, I have been getting promises of prayer for Uncle Joe from all over the world.
What did the Poor Souls do before the Internet?
Now I have just posted another intention, for "John" (intestinal cancer). This was the friend who played the matchmaker for my sister Mary and her husband. My brother-in-law is taking his friend's grim prognosis very hard. Please pray for him, too.
Wherever you are in the world. Nunblog

Meredith’s story Eight year old Meredith has been in the hospital since April 27th in a medically induced coma. The doctors were baffled for over 3 weeks and didn't know what had caused her seizures and illness.

On May 13, Meredith was diagnosed with Acute Necrotyzing Encephalopathy after being transferred to Cincinnati Children's Hospital the day before.

Please pray for continued strength for Meredith's parents, sister and extended family.

Please Pray for Jessica Hulcy

please pray for Elijah's family... Two weeks ago, I wrote my Saturday post about a little boy named Elijah who has cancer, and I asked for you to pray for him. I do appreciate those prayers that were sent up to the Father on his behalf...Elijah left his earthly home and went to be with the Lord today. I'm sure he's hanging out with Jesus and with the angels

I can't go much into detail my sister in haiti is in dire need of prayer her life may be in danger and my mother is hurting because she can't visit her there pray that my sister will be protected by God's angel both her and her children please ask her to open the doors for my mother to be able to visit my siblings this is really important please pray for her please.

Sister Coreus
Family of God

PLEASE PRAY FOR TJ AND HER TWIN BOYS IN UTERO!

TJ and her husband just found out that the twins she is pregnant with are identical boys that have Twin To Twin Transfusion.
The story starts . . . HERE

and continues . . . HERE

Let her know you are praying for her!

Please Pray for baby Joshua~Update #6
My SIL gave birth to baby Joshua this morning but he is having difficulty breathing on his own so I am asking for prayers that he pulls through and for my SIL that she be at peace while separated from him. He is being taken to a hospital that is 1 hr away from our town. My DH and his family and I are on our way to be with him...I will update as soon as I can TIA

Sorry if this is the wrong place for this post...I am running out the door as we speak..Please forgive me!!

I just spoke to my MIL and Joshua's left lung collapsed last night. They had to put a chest tube in. They were going to try and feed him today but decided to wait. Please continue to pray for my little nephew and his momma! She is an hour away from him and still in the hospital. Thank you all for your prayers!!

Please Pray For 13 Year Old Marcus I received a request to pray for Marcus and ask that all who read my blog to please remember him and his family in your prayers.
He has Chiari I Malformation. Go here to keep up with his progress.

Pray for Raegan - Please.
I do not know this family personally, but her mom and I have corresponded in the past. Mom's a hoot!!

Go over to their blog and check out Miss Raegan who is at Cinncinnati Children's Hospital to fix special needs she had when born in China.
http://mississippizen.blogspot.com/

I'm sure it helps soooo much to know folks are "pulling for ya". She is loved. We all just want her to know this!!

Please Pray for Karli
I have been incredibly blessed in my life. I have a wonderful family, an incredible friend network, and so many other blessings. We have all been blessed with safety and good health, for the most part. In my life, I have known people who had cancer, but it was always an acquaintance, a friend's relative or a relative's friend. It has never been my relative or friend.

Yesterday that changed. Karli is a precious 3 1/2 year old little girl with big eyes and curly hair. Her parents, Chris and Beth, are very good friends of ours and we do many, many things together. The guys play softball while us wives and kids watch, we get together for game nights and scrapbooking and nights on the town and Bunco. They are our close friends. They are also our relatives. Chris and Andy are cousins. So besides doing things as friends, we also see each other for holidays and birthday parties and family celebrations. To say we spend a lot of time together is a bit of an understatement.

Karli woke up with a fever yesterday and Beth brought her into the doctor. After determining the cause of the fever was a bladder infection, the doc decided to check her blood to make sure the infection hadn't gone to her kidneys as well. That's when they discovered that her white blood cells and platelets were very low. A call to Children's Hospital soon had them on their way to the Twin Cities for further testing. Last night it was confirmed that she has leukemia and today they'll continue testing to determine what type and how advanced it is.

Please pray for sweet, active, funny little Karli, her parents Chris and Beth, her older sister Kaitlin and her younger brother Brett. They need all the prayers they can get and I know it will mean the world to them. Thank you.

Please pray for Aria
One of the children I tutor in reading at school, Aria (2nd grade), just lost her daddy today to very early onset alzheimers. She also has a sister named Leah and her mom's name is Laura, and if you could remember them in prayer I would be grateful

Pray For A FriendI would like to ask all those who read here to pray for a friend of mine who was seriously injured today. She fell down a long flight of concrete stairs and was helicopter-ed to a hospital. She is suffering from a cracked skull, brain hemoragging, and five broken ribs. She has two young girls and her 9 year old is actually the one who found her at the bottom of the stairs bleeding from both ears.

Please pray for my Dad
Hi friends, just a quick post with a request that any of you praying types out there please send up a few words on behalf of my Dad, Peter. He has been admitted this afternoon to hospital after being sick all week and having chest pains; tests have revealed he has had a minor heart attack.
I know they said minor, but to me, my siblings and especially my mum, this is major.

Our dad is an amazingly fit and healthy 63 year old guy. The thought of our dad laid up in hospital with a heart attack is inconceivable. Please pray especially for my mum. My dad is her best friend; I know she is freaking out right now. I am flying down to be with them first thing in the morning. Thanks in advance for your prayers. :)

We know that we serve a God who is a God of miraculous healing and mighty things. Please pray for her healing, as well as comfort for her girls and husband at this time.

God bless you all tonight... Hug your families a little extra.

In 2007, Kennedy's friend Ashlyn (who happens to have Down syndrome) was battling Leukemia at the same time as Kenn was. Right after Kennedy finished treatment, we took a trip to Michigan where Ashlyn lives and got a chance to visit her in the hospital.
Ashlyn's mom, Nicki, and I compared notes through our journeys. We kept tabs on each other, prayed for each other and rejoiced as each of our children ended treatment. As we slowly edged further and further away from chemo we took comfort in longer breaks between hemonc visits, our daughters hair growing back and normal life resuming, but as is the case with most cancer moms, the dreaded "R" word - relapse - is never far from our minds.

Yesterday Nicki started living out our worst nightmare. Ashlyn has relapsed. Her Leukemia is back. She is back in the hospital and instead of enjoying their Summer, the McFadden family will spend their days helping Ashlyn fight. Again. I have NO doubt in my mind that she will win. Again.

Please please please pray for Ashlyn!!!! Please pray for her mom and dad and big brothers! Please click on the button above and visit her blog and let them know you're praying! Cancer SUCKS!!!!!!
Life With My Special K's

Read Abby's Story Here.

Pray for Kate McRae Find out about Kate McRae's story on Promise's Blog.

Pray for Brayden

Please Pray for Baby Number 5
Yes, we are expecting another baby - we're hoping that this baby will join our family in January. I am 10 weeks and we were actually planning on waiting awhile longer to share this happy news, but unfortunately circumstances that have developed are creating the need for much prayer. This baby's story actually starts back in February.

Most of you know that I was pregnant back then with baby #4. I went to see my doctor at the beginning of Feb. where they took my blood and confirmed the pregnancy and so forth. Then on February 22, baby #4 (whom we named Jeremiah) went to Heaven to be with Felicity. Read More

Pray for Wyatt

My nephew Wyatt was playing with matches and gasoline today, and caught his leg on fire. He has 3rd degree burns on one leg and 2nd degree burns on the other leg. He is being life flighted from West Yellowstone to the Burn Unit at the University of Hospital. I'm here waiting for him to arrive. Waiting is horrible. I've said my personal prayers, but I ask for as many prayers as we can get! Wyatt is such a special young man. We love him. I hate to think of him in pain or scared, and I especially hope his recovery will go as well as possible.

Thank you for your love and support!

Please pray for Marsha, Sasha, and the whole family Marsha is another adoptive mom here in Ukraine. I have directed you to her blog a few times and you have seen her heart. She is a mom that has made every child feel important at the orphanage. She brought something for the children every single day. She brought food or activities for them to play with. She brought a guitar and the children loved playing it and she would play and sing. She danced. She laughed. She hugged. She smiled. All the children loved Marsha. On her birthday, children brought drawings and crafts that they made for her. She broke down walls with the older teenage boys. She told them how much she loved them and how people in America are praying for them. Read More

Find more prayers across the blogosphere here.

If you are planning on listing prayers on your site please add your link so we can find them. Also if you have any updates on the prayers that are listed please update our readers in the comments section. Don't forget to grab the code for your website!

Prayer Chain Button Code

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Weekend Reflection #62 | Time for me to Vent

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 06:49:07 PDT

It's time once again to reflect on the past week. What were some of the positive things that happened? What really bothered you? Did you laugh? Cry? Stand on your head? Whatever you did this past week I want to hear it. Writing down all the crazy things that happened over the past week is a good way to deal with stress. As our lives get busier and busier along with it is stress. It is time to let it all out so you can enjoy your weekend. Grab the button code, make your blog post and don't forget to leave your link with Mr. Linky!

A lot of my readers have their own meme's to vent on. Well, this is mine.

I've had a rough week but today was the worst. My bed is getting more and more uncomfortable because the mattress is so hard. It is adding extra pressure on my hip and I wake up so sore. So this morning I got up around 6am tired, and sore and crashed on the more comfortable, soft, couch. But an hour later Conan woke up and was whiny for nearly an hour.

When my husband got up around 8 I begged for him to help me with the kids. (Ciara was up by then) He doesn't have to be to work until 10 so I thought he had plenty of time. Well, he didn't help out hardly at all and left me at 8:30 with three tired and cranky kids. Guess who else was tired and cranky? Yours truly.

Courtney and I got our showers in by 10am but that was when the screaming began. I was trying to edit my new template but couldn't concentrate because all three kids were making way too much noise. Chris had asked Courtney to do the dishes so I told her over and over again that she should start them. When she finally agreed to starting the dishes it took her 20 minutes to get off of her butt and get her hands wet!

Meanwhile the kids were being naughty. Conan decided to wrestle with my cat but the cat won. So I had to tend to a little boy with blood dripping off if his face. And I had to fight with him to keep his band aids on. I won and he kept them on for about four hours. Sorry I don't have any photos.

Ciara was acting like a little devil like usual. After she took a shower she refused to put her clothes on. Then she took Conan's pull up off so they were both running around in their birthday suits. I was way too tired and impatient by then to do anything about it.

I was also a little upset with Chris because I asked him to get things ready for the baby for me on his days off. Yes I am nesting and ready for my baby, but the house is not! This morning the new bassinet was still in it's box, the baby swing is nowhere to be found and I hadn't even begun to pack my bag. So I called my father in law to help me out.

Of course, when he got here all three kids were acting like little angels. I put the bassinet together with a little help from Courtney. My father in law tried to find the baby swing but couldn't. At least the little ones got a nap in when he took them with him to the storage facility.

Now it is 6:15pm and the kids are playing nicely with the noisy toys. The bassinet is together, the swing still is nowhere to be found, and I have a bag packed for CJ. I'll have to pack a bag for myself tomorrow when I will be alone! The kids are going to Grandma and Grandpa's. Thank goodness!

Grab the Weekend Reflection Code

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How to Get Rid of Unwanted Belly Fat After Having a Baby

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Wed, 15 Jul 2009 10:57:09 PDT

Having a baby is exciting, scary and can be a lot of fun too. Some women are scared to death about how their body will look after having their baby. They may ask themselves, "long will it take me to lose my baby weight?" or "Will I ever have a flat stomach again?" or the most asked question among pregnant women, "How long will it take for me to fit into my pre-pregnancy jeans?"

There are several resources about pregnancy and nutrition but sometimes just eating right does not help you to lose that extra "baby weight." If you just found out that you are expecting an addition to your family you can prevent the extra weight gain and have your normal body back by following these great tips from health and fitness expert, Michelle Moss.

For five years now Michelle has helped thousands of women from around the globe lose their pregnancy weight including the extra fat around their middle in record time. Her diet and exercise programs have worked with amazing results.

Her complete mommy kit which includes an instant downloadable e book, and a CD will teach you how to lose those extra five or ten pounds that most moms complain about. In her new kit you will also have your own exercise journal, exercise manual with flash cards, goal tracker and weight loss chart, eating plan calculator and meal planner, and simply delicious recipes for moms on the go.

Just take a look at these success stories:

If you are still not convinced I invite you to take a look at Michelle's website and the complete mommy kit. If you are pretty far into your pregnancy and worried about the way your body will look once your baby is born Michelle can also help you. Learn how to lose that belly fat after having a baby from Michelle Moss today.

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Introducing 100% Recycled Aluminum Foil from Reynolds Wrap

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 15:14:04 PDT

Help the environment by using 100% recycled aluminum foil from Reynolds Wrap. My husband the chef, and I recently used this new product from Reynolds Wrap and loved it. Not only is it environmentally friendly it works just as good as the original Reynolds Wrap aluminum foil.

Reynolds Wrap 100% Recycled aluminum foil can be purchased at your local grocery store. Be sure to visit their website and facebook site for more information and valuable coupons.

Below are a few additional facts about Reynolds Wrap® Foil from 100% Recycled Aluminum:
-It is a food-safe foil made of a mix of post-consumer aluminum (can include stadium seats, automobile components, cookware, gutters, siding and used beverage containers) and industrial aluminum (such as scraps from industrial cable)
-It has the strength and durability you've come to expect from the Reynolds Brand, making it perfect for wrapping lunches, snacks and leftover foods to keep food fresh, and lining pans and baking dishes to cut back on cleanup and save water.

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Say It Forward Follow Me Friday Week 25

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 12:18:36 PDT

I always combine these two memes because they are very similar. Say it Forward was started by Five Minutes For Mom and is a carnival recognizing top commenters. Follow Me Friday recognizes followers. I believe that followers or subscribers and comments are equally important so I will feature both.

Today I am featuring Leslie from Leslie Loves Veggies. Leslie states on her profile that she loves, "Jesus, My Family, and being a Vegetarian!" On her blog she shares delicious vegetarian recipes, product reviews and giveaways. If you are looking for a great way to improve your diet or find more information on healthy foods and giveaways you should add Leslie Loves Veggies to your daily reader.

Make sure you give her a visit and congratulate her for being a loyal commenter here at Healthy Moms. Leslie don't forget to grab your badge over at Five Minutes For Mom.

We love getting new followers. Every week this blog gets about 5-10 new followers. Hopefully this will grow even more. This week I will say a little bit about one of our valuable followers.

Today I am going to introduce you to Katrina. Katrina describes herself as, "Perfectionist to a degree, extremely kind & a good listener :) I am a recovering addict to retail (& have the debt to prove it) :x blah! I love to learn and have an open mind to learning new things! Currently in school to finish Nursing. I have two adorable godchildren that I love! I am in a relationship with my first love. We are proud parents of our chocolate lab, Brownie."

She blogs at Katrina V where she writes about blog parties, giveaways, and product reviews. Thank you Katrina for following Healthy Moms! Don't forget to visit her and tell her she is featured here at Healthy Moms.

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Spotlight Blog | Ziggy's Blog

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:39:48 PDT

This week I interviewed Laura Day from Ziggy's Blog.

Laura is a single mom of 2 girls, working full-time as a medical transcriptionist and in college studying to be a special education teacher. Scroll down for my exclusive interview with Laura.

HM: When did you start blogging?
Laura: End of January 2009.

HM: Why do you blog?
Laura: I'm not sure why I actually started blogging. I had come across a few blogs and decided I would try it. Then I started blogging on some of the dangerous teen trends my daughter got involved in when she was younger. I had such a good response I decided to continue blogging on the teen trends that my daughter didn't get involved in (or least not that I know of).

It gives me a little "me" time without actually leaving the house, and I have found it to be enjoyable. The blogging community is a huge and friendly place.

HM: What is your blog about?
Laura: I'm a single mom raising two teen daughters. My blog contains a lot of posts on dangerous teen trends, plus I blog about life as a single mom.

HM: What are your ultimate goals for your blog?
Laura: My main goal is to inform parents of tweens & teens (and even children) of all the wild and dangerous trends that teenagers are mixed up in so they can be aware of what to watch out for in their own child. My oldest daughter started cutting when she was 13 & I had no idea kids were doing this. It was such a shock to me, but now that I'm aware of it, I see a lot of teens that cut...and the list goes on and on.

HM: What do you want your readers to get out of your blog?
Laura: I hope they gain knowledge about what teenagers are having to deal with in today's world. Gone are the Leave It To Beaver days, but I do try to lighten up at times with a little humor. I want them to enjoy reading my blog and to visit often.

HM: What do you do to get your readers to keep coming back?
Laura: Well, I'm still fairly new, I have joined several blog communities to help get my blog seen.

Also, with permission from my daughter, I blog about the teen trends she experienced, what she was feeling, what I was feeling...I try to keep it real.

HM: Do you have any favorite blogs or any blogs that you read regularly?
Laura: I have quite a few parenting blogs that I read on a regular basis, really too many to list here, but they are all on my blogroll.

HM: Do you have any advice for other bloggers?
Laura: Right now, I'm still asking for advice/help with my blog, but I would say write about what you enjoy. Blogging shouldn't be a chore.

You can visit Laura at Ziggy's Blog.

I invite all Mommy and Health bloggers to be in the spotlight. Click here for more information on how your blog can be in the spotlight on Healthy Moms.

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My Tubal Reversal Success story

michellepugh1@yahoo.com (Michelle) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 22:44:03 PDT

I had my tubes tied pomeroy style (which means cut, burned, then tied back together) in March 1996 during my c-section with my 3rd child. I was 22 at the time and thought I was done having children. Little did I know my then husband would end up leaving me two years later for an older woman.

When my current husband and I met and then married in 1999, he had no children. He said he was fine with just helping me raise mine as his own, but I told him I thought we should get my tubes untied and try to have a child together because I wanted him to know the joyous feeling of looking into a child’s eyes and knowing they came from you.

Finally, after six years of me chanting at him, he decided he did want to do it if I was still willing! So on April 27th, 2005 I had my tubal reversed at Lakeshore Surgical Center in Gainesville, Ga. by Dr. William Greene.

The tubal reversal cost us $6300 out of pocket, but was much worth it since I found out I was pregnant with my now 3 year old only a month and a half later! My little guy was born in Feb. of 2006 and we went on to have a girl, our second tubal reversal miracle, in December 2007.

Our family is now complete as I had my tubes re-tied during my c-section with my 5th child, but we will always be thankful that God allowed us the two tubal reversal miracles :)

If you are thinking of having your tubes untied, it is possible. I'm living proof. For anyone interested, I have pictures of my TR journey on my blog located HERE.

Visit my blog Simply Blessed for more stories about the trials, tribulations and joys of raising five children!

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Potty TrainingTips [Digg]

Wed, 08 Jul 2009 19:18:32 PDT

Free no nonsense resource for moms looking for a simpler way to train their child. Join our affiliate program and start earning money giving this away!

Potty TrainingTips

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 19:12:50 PDT

Welcome to the pre launch of our new ebook on potty training. The Healthy Moms Guide to Potty Training is a no nonsense resource for moms looking for a simpler way to train their child.

In this guide you will learn:

1. Why quick potty training methods don't always work.

2. How to end frustrations and over come obstacles during the potty training process.

3. What resources are out there and how you can use them to help your individual child.

4. And much, much more!

For a limited time you can get this fascinating guide for free with rebrandable rights so you can give it away to your friends, family, website visitors and blog readers.

Use the ebook as an incentive to get your visitors to return to your website.
Give it away as a blog giveaway.
Or just post the download link on your website.

All you need to do is leave your name and e mail to claim your free guide. Make sure you check your e mail right away for instructions on how you can earn extra money for giving this away.

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Lady Doctor Gets Death Threats for Revealing TOP SECRET Fat Loss Secret to General Public!

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 18:44:19 PDT

A new breakthrough secret is all you now need in order to forever shed countless pounds, stay healthy, and add many years to your life!

A lady doctor from Arizona has blown the lid off the best-kept secret in weight loss ever discovered -- and this has the whole diet food and drug industries turned upside down and in nothing less than a torrential uproar.

Her name is Dr Suzanne Gudakunst, and she's marching to the beat of a different drum.

And no, nothing about her "secret" is difficult -- nor does it require that you do something completely out of the ordinary or anything unnatural.

Instead, the Arizonian boasts proudly "...this is something that I caught onto just before 2002 when there was so much research and exploration going around concerning the human colon and digestive system working in harmony with nutritional absorption, and I started doing independent studies just to test things at first ... but which I later expanded on after seeing some fantastic results."

This same woman medical practitioner went on to accurately determine a definitive correlation between harmful plague and parasitic infestations of the human bowel tract, and people suffering chronic obesity -- and who despite intense diet and exercise appeared to be unable to lose any weight whatsoever.

Over the course of six years the Arizona doctor developed a number of natural treatments for the removal of these same harmful, even life-threatening plaques and rapidly reproducing digestive parasites -- and when applied to even worse-case patients suffering extreme obesity (98% of which were in immediate danger of dying) she saw a 100% effectiveness and success rate.

She then borrowed from her research on the severely obese, and applied the same strategies on milder cases of overweight persons -- only to find the same effectiveness and quality results as described above (although the individual weight loss per subject wasn't nearly as much as those obese patients 100 lbs to 200 lbs or more overweight).

So powerful is her secret that she's able to reverse diabetes, rid illness altogether in people suffering from cancer (linked directly to poor diet and overweight factors), as well as an elimination of an entire spectrum of serious and otherwise life-threatening diseases.

Nearly 100% of all her case subjects were told in the alternative by "conventional doctors" that they either had just months or years to live, or they would never live a life anything resembling remotely a "normal" existence -- yet after applying Dr Suzanne's treatments saw a complete contradiction to others doctors' prognoses.

Again, nothing about her secret is unnatural or requires someone to do any major action or modification in their lives.

In fact, her entire treatment is based completely on built-into-nature 'protection agents' scattered throughout the world in the form of select herbs, extracts, and organic constituents, and which can be found in a variety of plants -- but when combined in specific combinations and carefully chosen amounts make for a solution to what is perhaps the world's worst ever plague: OBESITY (and the illnesses and diseases resulting from it -- or at least severely aggravated or exacerbated by it).

Now to everyone else's great gain, whether suffering from just a few extra pounds and inches, to those extremely fat and overweight, this brave, bold lady doctor is releasing to the general public her secret for forever destroying the tight unrelenting closed-fist of obesity's stronghold over the now more than 40% of Americans labeled obese, and others worldwide.

But she's not promising any of us for how long.

Some experts and sociologists suggest that in the bigger scheme of things, the world will never tolerate a discovery of such magnitude, any more than it would be realistic to expect a car that runs on water (even if very real) to ever become commercially available to the general public for day-to-day use.

One well-respected and famous diet & wellness author wrote years ago that if anyone ever "truly unlocked the keys to permanent fat loss, they may actually suffer the same fate as JFK."

Check out her Fat Loss Secrets.

...so you may want to head on over there now and get it and before someone or "something" gets it forever yanked out of ever getting in YOUR hand at least.

It's in a very easily readable format and is quickly and readily understood and mastered by anyone with even a 4th grade reading level.

While you're there, why not scroll down and review for yourself the huge successes others are now having with this incredible breakthrough in rapid, massive weight loss and extremely improved and enhanced health, now made freely available to the rest of us?

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Wordless Wednesday | Pool Fun

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 08:49:49 PDT

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Caught-Ya! My Anger Management Plan

noreply@blogger.com (GranolaMom4God) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 22:36:31 PDT

On my refrigerator we have two sticker charts. (I love stickers. They motivate me.)

One is for Mr. Smackdown.

One is for Mr. Me-Too.

They are our Caught-Ya! Charts.

Formerly they were known as our Fruits of the Spirit Sticker Charts. Though a good name, it wasn't an enticing name. The charts represent the same thing--godly behavior. The Fruits of the Spirit, as described in the Bible, are love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness and self-control.

When the boys show a "fruit," I say in a sly and often loud way, "Caught ya!" Off they run, giggling the whole way to the kitchen, to put a sticker on their chart. When the chart gets filled they get to pull out a reward from The Can, given to us by my sister. Inside the can are different fun rewards: bake cookies with Mom, date night with Dad, watch a video, have a bubble bath, pizza night, popcorn and a movie, etc.

Many might argue with me that this extrinsic reward is teaching my children to only act good to receive a reward. There are times they do act in true Caught Ya fashion and expect nothing in return. And there are other times that they are a bit ugly and un-Caught Ya-like. Don't get me wrong--I love them and they do get a lot of Caught Ya stickers, but there are other times I would like to rip their charts up. And that is when I display a lack of Caught Ya behavior, namely self-control.

I'm sure that none of you have ever screamed at your children. Not! I'm not really sure where I developed my ability to let loose my fury on my children, but I know that sadly, my children have been the avenue through which I raise my voice. Afterward, I feel like crud. I am learning to avoid loading ammunition into the barrel of my mouth.

I have to discover what triggers my hostile reaction.

For example, I find that I am more likely to get angry at my children

when we need to leave the house and I am scrambling to gather necessary items together to get out of the door
when I rapidly encourage them to move quicker and it only makes them move slower
when I am hungry
when I am tired
when I feel pulled in several different directions
when my children remind me of someone who has hurt me or I don't like
when I am feeling guilty
when I view them as an interruption to my agenda or plans
when I feel that I deserve some "Me-Time."

I have come to realize that I need to recognize these triggers. I also have realized that I have a choice in how I react. I can respond and use the situation as a teachable moment. I can ask (beg) God to give me self-control and eyes to see the skirmish more clearly.

As I delve deeper into figuring out what ticks me off, I have come across some steps to help me dig deeper into my heart. Now, I can't take all of the credit. They come from a great book called, When You Feel Like Screaming--Help For Frustrated Moms by Pat Holt and Grace Ketterman.

Identify clearly whatever feeling you are experiencing.
Determine why you feel that way.
Decide what you will do to correct the problem and erase the emotion.
Follow through with the action.

Next time you are tempted to scream, walk away. Take 10 seconds before you respond, NOT react. Pray. Allow yourself to really see what has made you upset--chances are it may have nothing to do with your child.

Good luck and let me know how it goes!

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Guide To Potty Training

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 19:40:23 PDT

Don't miss the Healthy Moms Guide to Potty Training pre launch. For a limited time only you can get this no nonsense resource for moms free! If you are looking for a simpler way to potty train your child get your free potty training guide today!

Find out how you can make some extra money by giving these potty training tips away!

Get the Healthy Moms Guide to Potty Training now.

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MOM, FIX LOW BACK PAIN WITH FITNESS

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 15:33:26 PDT

BABY BUMP BUSY MOM FITNESS

Most moms suffer low back pain, wrist pain, neck/shoulder and upper back pain. Today I have a few suggestions to help busy moms manage low back pain using fitness. Please refer to last days post for wrist and forearm exercises.

MOM, Fix Low Back Pain with Fitness
Mom Fitness-Low Back Pain can be managed with a few key moves such as:

1. Front Plank
This is a great exercise for mom to help regain some tone in stretched out abdominal muscles. The front plank is a safe abdominal exercise for mothers who suffer rectis diastases. Start with 30 seconds and gradually work up to 2 minutes.

2. Side Plank

This exercise is great for your entire body, including shoulder stability. Hold for no more than 30 seconds on each side and stabilize your shoulder before you lift. Keep you body straight and lift your hip to the ceiling. Perform 2-3, 30 second side planks per side

3. Cook Hip Bridge

Gluts and hip flexors are addressed with this exercise. Pull your knee to your chest and perform a one legged glut bridge. 10/side

4. Bilateral Back Extension

Start on all 4's, tense your abdominals lift away your arm and opposite leg using your glut form you body without letting your pelvis shift. Work up to 10/side

5. Lateral Stability- this is often overlooked and specific for mom back back. Most moms push a hip out to one side and prop their baby on it- bad idea. Also your hips and pelvis are changing or have changed so you need to regain strength here. Try to old you child against your abdomen.

Use a resistance band under your feet and walk sideways keeping your feet straight ahead. 10-20 steps in each direction.

Some other moves that you will want to be doing to prevent, manage and alleviate low back pain are stretching your hip flexor muscles, using a foam roller to roll your spine and gluts and stretching your mid back thoracic spine.

Baby Bump Busy Mom Fitness
Jacqueline Gradish, BSc, CPT
http://jfitmom.blogspot.com

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Baby-Led Solids

porphyria182@gmail.com (Lyndsey) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 13:03:16 PDT

I try to parent with a mind for what is most natural. I breastfeed, I practice EC (Elimination Communication), we converted to cloth diapers when Kaius was only 8 weeks, we happily co sleep, and I have breastfed full-time since the moment he was born. A few months ago, I started thinking about how I would go about introducing foods into my baby's diet. It wasn't that I felt like I NEEDED to begin solids; it was more the pressure of society's expectations that a baby would begin to eat between 4-6 months. Everywhere we went, strangers seemed to think that I should start feeding Kaius baby cereal followed by pureed 'Stage 1' baby foods. I would politely brush aside their comments choosing to rely upon my mother's intuition. I felt that Kaius had no need for solids and was perfectly content with our breastfeeding relationship. Selfishly, I hated the idea of Kaius getting nourishment from any source other than my own body. I loved those milky moments of new motherhood and though I knew they would eventually have to involve food as well as milk, I was willing to wait until Kaius let me know that he needed more.

Now that Kaius is nearing 6.5 months and has achieved the following milestones: sitting without support (and pulling himself into a sitting position on his own), has two teeth with a third making it's presence known, mimics a chewing motion whenever I eat in front of him, grabs food off my plate, no longer pushes a spoon out of his mouth, and has a good start on the "pincer grip", I have once again started to contemplate the introduction of solids. Over the past two months, I have researched the various guidelines for food introduction, and I have found one frame of thought that agrees with my mothering philosophy: Baby-Led Solids.

The philosophy behind Baby-led Solids is that a baby will get most or all of its nourishment from breast milk alone throughout the first 12 months of his life. When a baby begins to illustrate his desire for food, it is more a desire to play with food and learn through this play how to feed himself. Baby will be able to eat most of the same foods as his parents and can take an active role in the family mealtimes. The Breastfeeding relationship will be preserved by avoiding the accidental overfeeding (and therefore fullness) that can result from spoon feeding.

Basically, we will present Kaius with foods from our own plates that are soft, easy to hold, and pose little choking hazard. He will then experiment with them however he sees fit. If he is hungry, then he will learn to move the food from his tray to his mouth, chew, and swallow. If he is full, then he will not be accidentally forced to eat because there will be no spoon feeding involved. For me, the greatest benefit will be the preservation of our breastfeeding relationship. I'm not sure how I'll feel in a year or so, but for now, I don't want to lessen any of those precious nursing moments by even one feeding.

Join me at Motherhood Moments to follow our Baby-Led Solids journey!

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Nutrition 101 Part 1

getfitjenn@comcast.net (Coach Jenn) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 10:08:33 PDT

Lets get back to basics with a little nutrition 101 lesson. Knowledge and understanding is the first step to change. Now you don’t need to be a microbiologist to succeed, but you do need to have a basic understanding of the major nutrients that you’ll get from your foods.

The food you consume can be broken down into 3-main categories of nutrients:

Protein
Carbohydrates
Fats

So, lesson number one is about Protein specifically. I'll follow up with two more articles about carbs and fats.

Protein is essential to repair and growth in muscles. It is composed of amino acids, tiny building blocks in the human body. Amino acids are critical to your health. Remember the more muscle that you can keep and build, the higher your metabolism. The more muscle, the more fat burn, even while you sleep.

However, one of the biggest reasons why protein plays a big role in your supportive eating is because protein does not spike your sugar level up. The more your blood sugar is steady, the more fat your body can release to be utilize as energy.

Protein is hard for your body to break down causing up to 20% more thermic effect compared to carbohydrates and fat. What does that mean? When you consume protein, 20% of the total protein calories are used just to break down the protein into small chains of amino acids. That is extremely important to help boost your metabolism.

Protein is also a natural appetite suppressant. My favorite sources of Protein include:

Chicken Breast
Turkey Breast
Fish, Tuna
Lean Pork
Low-Fat Dairy products
Whey protein
Beans
Nuts
Legumes

Protein Rule #1:
Consume a serving of high quality protein in every meal.
Your body is going to need an on-going supply of amino acids to keep feeding your muscles with the raw nutrients it needs to repair itself and increase in size and strength.

Protein Rule #2:
Consume 2 servings of protein immediately after your workouts.
When you train hard, you’re causing microfiber damage to your muscle cells. Don’t worry, thats a good thing because you’re training your muscles to build up stronger to be able to handle the extra workload you’re throwing at it. That repair process will help you build more muscle, increase in strength, and burn more fat. Immediately after a workout, your muscles are BEGGING for some additional support to begin the recovery process so they need more protein than usual.

Protein Rule #3:
Consume a serving of protein about 1-hour before going to bed.
When you sleep, your body goes into repair mode.This is a key opportunity for your body to build muscle and burn fat. But to do its job, it needs protein and since you’re about to go into a 6-8 hour fasting period, you need to give it one more shot of protein’s amino acids.

Protein Rule #4:
Consume a serving of high quality protein first thing in the morning.
While you were sleeping, your body was basically in a starved state. When you first get up in the morning, it will be looking for a re-supply.

Come back next week for the lowdown on carbohydrates. Until then, have a safe, happy and healthy week ahead.

- Coach Jenn of PersonalFitCoach.com

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Potty Time Tuesday | Information About This Carnival

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 09:15:57 PDT

Potty Time Tuesdays has been running on Healthy Moms for quite some time now. Not very many parents have been participating so I thought I would give you some extra information about this in case you are confused every Tuesday.

This meme is mostly here to help parents have an easier time potty training their children. If you want to participate as a potty training parent go ahead and leave your link and describe for us your child and what stage your child is at in the potty training process or goals you have for your child.

If your children are already potty trained you can also join us. If you believe that you have enough parental knowledge on potty training and you think it would benefit other parents just starting out then join us every Tuesday and share your tips on your blog. This isn't just for parents who are potty training their kids. This is also for us to help each other out with what can be a very frustrating process. I hope everyone reading this takes the Potty Time Tuesdays button code and adds it to their site. With your help we can grow this carnival and it will be a lot of fun!

Be sure to come back later this afternoon or tomorrow to get your free copy of The Healthy Moms Guide to Potty Training. I am giving it away along with rebrandable private label rights. On August 1, I will launch our new Healthy Moms online shopping site where the e book will go up for sale. Once it is up for sale I will no longer be giving it away for free. After it is launched in August you can find out how to make some extra money by joining our affiliate program. Stay tuned and I hope you return later this afternoon or tomorrow!

How is your child doing? Do you have some potty training tips to share with all of us? We'd love to hear about your child. Link up and share with us your potty training story

.

Grab the Potty Time Tuesdays Code

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4 Reasons Moms Must Pamper Their Health

noreply@blogger.com (Cascia) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 17:29:29 PDT

There’s a saying I remember from my childhood that went something like this – God couldn’t be everywhere at once, that’s why he made mothers. When I look at my mom and think of all that she’s done for me, I realize the truth of this statement. Moms are the first memories that children form, often the first people they see, recognize and love. It’s the innate bonding between mother and child that cements their relationship for life, one that is built on care and nurture.

My only complaint against moms is that they’re too unselfish – they give freely of their time and effort for everyone, except themselves that is. Most mothers neglect themselves and their health, because they have no time or they feel too guilty to do so. But, if you are a mom like me, set aside a few hours every day for yourself that you could use to pamper your health because:

• It keeps you hale and healthy: No one likes to think of their mom falling ill or growing old. If mothers took care of themselves just a fraction of the amount they did of their kids and spouses, they would stay healthy and happy. I’m not saying you have to be healthy in order to keep looking after your brood; just that a healthy mom makes for a happy family all round.

• It allows you to remain young: When moms get into fitness routine and begin to eat healthy food, they start looking and feeling younger because they lose weight and start fitting into clothes they had outgrown at pregnancy. This brings about a huge difference in the way you feel about yourself, your relationship with your spouse or partner, and your interactions with your kids.

• It sets an example for your children: When moms start eating healthy and working out, it sets an early example for kids to follow. They have the perfect foundation to become healthy adults who are conscious about their weight and other factors that are important to health in the long run. They know how to look after themselves without having to depend on other people.

• It keeps your home from falling apart: Let’s face it; moms are the centerpieces around which most families revolve. So if you’re healthy, you can ensure that your home keeps running like a well-oiled machine. You can prevent illnesses that keep you from taking care of your home and your family, and you can also keep your kids and spouse from worrying about you.

This article is written by Kat Sanders, who regularly blogs on the topic of x ray tech salary at her blog The X-Ray Vision-aries Blog. She welcomes your comments and questions at her email address: katsanders25@gmail.com.

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Is Your Teenager Out of Control? [Digg]

Sat, 27 Jun 2009 09:19:29 PDT

This program will help you regain parental control of your strong willed child. Learn how to discipline your troubled teen with this e book and video tutorials put together by a probation officer and family therapist.